2009/7/4 kj <no.em...@please.post>: > Precisely. As I've stated elsewhere, this is an internal helper > function, to be called only a few times under very well-specified > conditions. The assert statements checks that these conditions > are as intended. I.e. they are checks against the module writer's > programming errors.
Good for you. I'm convinced that you have used the assertion appropriately, and the fact that so many here are unable to see that looks to me like a good case for teaching the right use of assertions. For what it's worth, I read assertions at the beginning of a procedure as part of the specification of the procedure, and I use them there in order to document the procedure. An assertion in that position is for me a statement to the user of the procedure "it's your responsibility to make sure that you never call this procedure in such a way as to violate these conditions". They're part of a contract, as somebody (maybe you) pointed out. As somebody who works in the safety-critical domain, it's refreshing to see somebody teaching students to think about the circumstances in which a procedure can legitimately be called. The hostility you've received to that idea is saddening, and indicative of why there's so much buggy software out there. -- Tim Rowe -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
